 Alkalizing Agents/Diet can help with the following: | |  | | | Mental |  Panic Attacks |
Metabolic |
Acidosis | Foods that leave an acidic ash after being metabolized include proteins, starches, alcohol and sugar. When these types of food are avoided, the tissues become more alkaline. An alkaline diet is composed of approximately 75% alkaline foods and 25% acid foods. |
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Nervous System |
 Neuritis/Neuropathy| | An alkaline diet can reverse the effects of an overly acidic diet which may be contributing to nerve irritation and inflammation. |
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Tumors, Benign |
 Cysts| | Some doctors believe that a tendency to form cysts occurs more frequently in those with an acidic body pH. If so, an alkalizing diet may help. |
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Uro-Genital |
Interstitial Cystitis| | A book written by a urologist, Larrian Guillespie, MD called You Don't Have to Live With Cystitis (1985) details a fundamentally dietary approach to interstitial cystitis. She discusses alkalizing the diet, and avoiding aspartates.
Many people also find that certain foods increase their symptoms. The most frequently cited offenders are coffee, chocolate, ethanol, carbonated drinks, citrus fruits and tomatoes. Although there are broad guidelines that most IC patients can follow, discovering which particular foods may cause you problems requires perseverance. Many IC patients report that restricting their diet is an effective form of treatment and believe that it is worth the effort. Some IC patients report that they have the least trouble with rice, potatoes, pasta, vegetables, meat and chicken. |
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KEY | | May do some good | | | Likely to help | | | Highly recommended |
GLOSSARY
Alkaline
A substance having a pH above that of neutral water (7.0) when in solution. Signified as pH (potential of Hydrogen), alkaline fluids, such as the blood (pH about 7.4), have the ability to neutralize acids (solutions below pH 7.0). Metabolic wastes are acids, and the alkaline reserve of the blood neutralizes them until they are excreted.
Anxiety
Apprehension of danger, or dread, accompanied by nervous restlessness, tension, increased heart rate, and shortness of breath unrelated to a clearly identifiable stimulus.
Chronic (Chronicity)
Usually referring to chronic illness: Illness extending over a long period of time.
Cystitis
Inflammation of the urinary bladder.
Cysts (Cyst)
A closed pocket or pouch of tissue; a cyst may form within any tissue in the body and can be filled with air, fluid, pus, or other material. Cysts within the lung generally are air-filled, while cysts involving the lymph system or kidneys are fluid filled. Cysts under the skin are benign, extremely common, movable lumps. These may develop as a result of infection, clogging of sebaceous glands, developmental abnormalities or around foreign bodies.
Interstitial Cystitis
A chronic bladder problem involving a bladder wall that is inflamed and irritated. Symptoms include an urgent need to urinate, both daytime and nighttime; pressure, pain and tenderness around the bladder, pelvis and perineum (the area between the anus and vagina or the anus and scrotum) which may increase as the bladder fills and decrease as it empties during urination; a bladder that won't hold as much urine as it did before; pain during sexual intercourse; in men, discomfort or pain in the penis or scrotum. In many women, the symptoms get worse before their menstrual period. Stress may also make the symptoms worse, but it does not cause them.
Lactation (Lactate, Lactates, Lactating)
Production of milk; period after giving birth during which milk is secreted in the breasts.
Panic Attack (Panic Attacks)
A brief, irrational episode of fear that is perceived as so real that an individual may be driven to escape from the place or situation where it occurs. The attack is sudden and increases in severity until it leaves, usually within ten minutes. Panic attack symptoms are numerous and involve both mental and physical signs and symptoms. A panic attack can occur in other anxiety states such as agoraphobia and with certain activities and places. It may occur spontaneously without an apparent cause.
pH
A measure of an environment's acidity or alkalinity. The more acidic the solution, the lower the pH. For example, a pH of 1 is very acidic; a pH of 7 is neutral; a pH of 14 is very alkaline.
Protein (Proteins)
Compounds composed of hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen present in the body and in foods that form complex combinations of amino acids. Protein is essential for life and is used for growth and repair. Foods that supply the body with protein include animal products, grains, legumes, and vegetables. Proteins from animal sources contain the essential amino acids. Proteins are changed to amino acids in the body.
Sodium
An essential mineral that our bodies regulate and conserve. Excess sodium retention increases the fluid volume (edema) and low sodium leads to less fluid and relative dehydration. The adult body averages a total content of over 100 grams of sodium, of which a surprising one-third is in bone. A small amount of sodium does get into cell interiors, but this represents only about ten percent of the body content. The remaining 57 percent or so of the body sodium content is in the fluid immediately surrounding the cells, where it is the major cation (positive ion). The role of sodium in the extracellular fluid is maintaining osmotic equilibrium (the proper difference in ions dissolved in the fluids inside and outside the cell) and extracellular fluid volume. Sodium is also involved in nerve impulse transmission, muscle tone and nutrient transport. All of these functions are interrelated with potassium.
Last updated: Apr 13, 2008
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